Grain cleaner and loader



Oct. 11, 1932-. o. N. GREDELL 1,881,507

GRAIN CLEANER AND LOADER Filed May 29, 1930 ATTORNEY.

Patented Get. 11, 1932 i PATENT O F 1 OTTO N. GREDELL, OF KANSAS GITY,-MI SSOURI, ASSIG-NOR T0 STANDARD,-STEEL WORKS OF NORTH KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI loader may be GRAIN CLEANER AND LOADER My invention relates to separators and more particularly to grain cleaners and loaders of the type adapted for delivering a stream of grain by means of an air blast to an elevated casing from which the grain may fall to a receiver and the air blast be Wasted to atmosphere. 7

Many expedients have been devised for relieving air from the casing or cleaner head in such a manner as to permit all of the cleaned grain to fall to the receiver Without carrying dust and waste material, and permit the air moving at high speed to be relieved without carrying away desirable portions of the grain E stream, and usually involving the use of a plurality of baffles that either check air to such an extent that foreign matter falls with the grain into the receiver, or permit relief of the air blast in such a manner as to carry away the grain that should be saved. 7 p

The principal objects of my invention therefore are to relieve the air blast from a grain cleaner head in such amanner as to avoid withdrawal of useful grain with wasted air and waste material, to conductthe air blast from a cleaner head without substantial movement of the blast through a stream of grain falling from the stream of air discharged into a cleaner head, to move a portion of the air blast through. grain falling toward the discharge outlet ofthe cleaner head for assuring removal of dust and like material with the'waste d air whereby entanglement of dust with grain being transferred through a substantially avoided and clean grain may be delivered from the loader. in accomplishing these and other objects of my invention, 1 have provided'improved details of structure, the preferred forms of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein: A v

Fi 1 is a perspective view of a -grain cleaner and loader provided with a cleaner head embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical central section of the cleaner head. Y

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the head partly in section.

Referring in detail to the drawing I l designates generally a blower casing 1930. Serial in. 456,896.

adapted to contain a fan operable from a pulley Q'for creating a blast of air and moving grain from a bin 3 upwardly through a goose nee-k conduit 4 for lateral discharge toward a car or bin, a cleaner head ordinarily being mounted on the horizontally directed portion of the goose neck for .relievingair :and permitting grain .to fall toward a receiver.

My invention pertains particularly to the cleaner head and includes a discharge pipe 6 having a rear end flange 7 fixed to the goose neck portion 5 and preferably comprising a cylindrical mouth portion of the discharge conduit. I v

Mounted on said pipe is an outwardly flaring member 8, preferably conical, having a cylindrical flange 9 :at its innersmall'er end sea-lingly engaging the abutting 'a boss 10 formed on the pipe adja cent the rear end thereof, the flaring member being substantially longer than the pipe and having its-outer'end edge of greatest diameter located outwardly from the-end of the pipe. A chamber 11 is thus formed having the pipe for its cylindrical inner wall and a portion of the flaring member for its outer wall, for purposes presently disclosed. Fixed to the outer end edge of the flaring member 8 is an oppositely flaring vertical battle 12 comprising acone having an apex in the extended axis of the discharge pipe and forming a concave deflecting wall for receiving the air blast and material carried thereby discharged from the pipe.

The conical battle is cut on angular lines 13 7 "and 14 extending inwardly from the edge thereof and the peripheral portion between the lines is cut away w -e reby portion 15 of the edge of the conical baffle is spaced vertically and horizontally from the adjacent edge of the flaring member tov form a discharge mouth 16 for air relieved from the cleaner head.

- Extending rearwardly from the forwardly offset edge portion 15-of the conical battle is a conically curved secondary battle 1'? having an inner or rear end edge 18 curved conformably to the contour of the discharge pipe '6 and substantially equally spaced from the outer surface of the dischzirgepipe an'dthe isc'har'ge pipe I Ell A grain discharge outlet opening 22 is. formed preferably in the conical member 12 diametrically opposite the mouth 16, and a s out or chute 23 is located at the o enin comprising an outwardly downwardly inclined rear wall and side walls having perpendicular edges, while a gate or door 24 hinged on ears 25 fixed. to the baflie at the juncture of the spout side walls therewith is positioned over the open front of thes-pout for controlling flow of grain therethrough.

A weight 26 comprising a bar fixed to the lower edge of the gate tends to hold the gate in perpendicular position in engagement with the vertical edges of the side walls of the spout. r

The gate further includes wings 27 movable along the side walls of the spout having rear end portions 28 projecting rearwardly beyond the rear wall of the spout, and a rod 29 connecting the portions 28 is adapted to engage the spout upon outward pivotal movement of the gate, to limit the effective opening of the spout.

In operating apparatus constructed as described, a blast of air may move grain through the blower housing into and upwardly through the goose neck and discharge the same horizontally from the pipe 6 across the relatively large chamber in the cleaner head against the concave conical baffle. grain kernels will fall to the downwardly rearwardly inclined surface of the baffle or fall directly into the discharge opening, while air currents tend to move upwardly and are deflected into a rearward direction by the concaveconical baffle and then into a downward rearward direction by the secondbaffle The departing air currents are confined to movement through the upper portion of the flaring member, by reason of the location of the second baflle, and they move past the inner end and sides thereof into the passage 19, and thus are enabled to pass from the cleaner head through the opening 16.

Small portions of the air blast may be deflected downwardly as shown by the arrows in Fig.2 to pass upwardly through the falling 7 grain and thus pick up dust that otherwise might tend to fall with the grain into the discharge opening 22.

Attention is called to the fact that a zone of relatively quiescent air is formed in the cham- Heavy ber 11, and suction due to the discharged air blast sets up upwardly moving secondary air currents therefrom to carry dust away from the downwardly inclined wall of the flaring mouth member of the cleaner head.

The grain kernels will always strike against surfaces slanting with reference to the direc tion in which the kernels fall or are propelled or carried by the air blast, and the possible breakage of kernels due to impact against metal surfaces will be greatly reduced. Grain will tend to be retained in the bottom of the conical baffle on the axis of the discharge pipe 1' and form a cushion to receive the kernels moving horizontally from the discharge mouth, to reduce the effect of impact of said kernels with a vertically interposed baffle element. H

Grain falling through the chambers of the cleaner head and sliding on the curved and slanting surfaces move by gravity into and through the spout. The gate is normally retained by the weight 26in engagement with the vertical edgesof the spout to close the front side opening therein, thus forming the front wall of the spout. Normally grain will move in sufficient volume through the spout to seal the open lower end thereof against entrance of air.

Should the rate of flow of grain increase, the increased volume will be relieved by pressure ofthe falling stream of grain against the gate to swing the same outwardly and thus enlarge the opening. Themoving stream of grain will therefore always seal the spout.

Attention is called to the fact that the grain falls upon the outwardly inclined spout wall, and the impact of vertically falling grain therefore has no effect on the swinging gate.

What I claim and desire to secure by Let ters-Patent is: i

1. In a grain. cleaner and loader including a goose neck discharge pipe having a laterally directed outlet, a cleaner head includinga flaring conical portion having a smaller end sealingly engaging the pipe rearwardly from the outlet end thereof and a larger end located beyond the outlet end thereof and an oppositely concave baflie portion for receiving material discharged from said outlet, and a deflector extending rearwardly and downwardly over said discharge pipe. 7

2. In a grain cleaner and loader including a discharge conduit for grain carrying waste material, having a horizontally directed discharge pipe, a cleaner head including an out wardly flaring portion having an inner end located in spaced relation with the outlet end I of said pipe, an oppositely flaring portion forming a vertically positioned baflie provided with a downwardly opening discharge mouth for grain and a downwardly rearwardly inclined plate mounted on said baffle for, conducting air currents rearwardly in said outwardly flaring member for discharge from the head. i

3. In a grain cleaner and loader including a discharge conduit for grain carrying waste material having a horizontally directed discharge pipe, a cleaner head including an outwardly flaring member and an inwardly flaring member forming a battle presenting a concave face to the outlet end of said pipe, and means including a curved baifle plate extending from the upper edge of the first named baflie rearwardly into the outwardly flaring member, and longitudinally extending partitions between the curved member and the discharge pipe for conducting material carrying air blasts outwardly from the head.

4:. In a device of the character described including horizontally directed discharge pipe, a head in receiving relation with said pipe having a concave bottom provided with an opening, a spout located at said opening including side walls having vertical edges and a sloping wall extending outwardly from the outlet end of said pipe, and a gate pivotally suspended in front of said spout normally engaging the vertical edges of said side walls.

5. A grain cleaner comprising a housing having outwardly diverging cone-shaped walls and having an air blast outlet in one "of the walls, a grain discharge pipe extending through one of the walls and discharging against the opposite wall, a baflle plate in the housing guarding the air blast outlet for deflecting grain discharged against said wall, and a chute carried by the housing to dis charge the grain.

6. A grain cleaner comprising a housing having outwardly extending cone-shaped walls connected together at their peripheries and having an arcuate air blast discharge opening in one of the walls, a grain delivery pipe extending through the apex of one of the walls and extending into the housing for discharging grain into the apex portion of the other wall to be diverted thereby, a grain outlet chute for discharging grain from the housing, and a baiile plate guarding said opening for deflecting grain diverted by said cone-shaped wall.

7 A grain cleaner comprising a grain delivery pipe, a housing including an outwardly flaring portion fixed to said pipe and an oppositely positioned cone-shaped portion having its axis in axial. alignment with the axis of said pipe and having an arcuate air outlet adjacent the outwardly flaring portion, a baflle member fixed to the cone-shaped portion of the housing below said opening and extending parallel with the outwardly flaring portion of the housing to prevent grain from being carried through the air outlet, and means for discharging grain from the housing.

8. A grain cleaner comprising a housing including a cone-shaped portion and having an air outlet, a grain discharge pipe extending into the housing and discharging against said cone-shaped portion, a baifle plate in the housing guarding the air outlet for deflecting grain discharged against said portion, and a chute associated with the housing to deliver the grain therefrom.

9. A grain cleaner including a grain delivery pipe, a housing including an outward- 1y flaring portion fixed to said pipe and a wall closing the end of the outwardly flaring portion and having an arcuate air outlet adacent the outwardly flaring portion, a curved a battle member fixed to said wall below said arcuate opening and extending parallel with the outwardly flaring portion of the housing to prevent grain from being carried through said outlet, and means associated with said wall to divert the grain discharged through said delivery pipe.

In testimony whereof I aiflx my signature.

OTTO N. GREDELL. 

